Elysian Bifröst Winter Ale

Brewed by Elysian Brewing Co.
Style: American Strong Ale
Seattle, Washington USA

Forget winter time, drink this one all the time! A nice burst of hop bitterness is balanced very well with a fairly thick and deadly malt backbone. Lingering pleasant bitterness adds to the complexity. At 7.5% we could easily call this a Double American Amber Ale and drink it all year long. But they’re right, try sucking down a few after hittin the slopes...feels pretty good don’t it?

Tasted last year, but wasn’t able to add the rating then. Bottle. Orangeish with big white head. Cloudy, which I wasn’t expecting. Fresh wet aroma of oranges, malt and a big underlying hops presence. Hops aroma increases significantly as beer warms. Nice tanginess but flavor muddled just out of the fridge. Bitterness sticks to the tongue like a hoppy beer, but perhaps gently; citrusy hops flavor also intensifies as it warms. Maybe it’s not muddled; there are a lot of different hop varieties in this tasty, but not very wintry, ale. Big, satisfying, pleasant mouthfeel. I like it.

Amber and slightly hazy. White head and beautiful lacing. Scent of dry hops, grapefruit and tangerine, that mixes in with a hint of toffee, clove and cardamom. A perfect companion for those cold winter days when you feel the need to tuck yourself in a blanket and defrost. (Pint carried from Seattle via Bergen to Tromsø for the Superpower beer session part I, 13.01.09)

Not too much aroma. Great cloudy orange color. This is nice. Creamy head and flavor, some spices, orange zest. Goes down easy.

Tasted at Tanglewood. Peachy amber color with excellent lace. Smells like marigolds and hops. Delicious! Ripples of hops flavors with peach, grass and floral tones. Tongue-tingling. Would be extra delicious on cask.

Deep slightly hazy copper coloured body with a beautiful tan head, two centimetres thick. Aroma of fresh hops, malt, alcohol and a bit of sweet fruits. Medium to full-bodied; Strong hoppy tastes come through first with a bit of malt, some alcohol, fruits and a bit of bitterness at the end. Aftertaste shows some malt, a bit of sweetness, but mostly dry hops from the flavour - nice! Overall, a good and strong IPA - with a bit of a kick and a good sweetness at the end. I sampled this 65 cL bottle purchased from Half Time in Poughkeepsie, New York on 11-June-2009, sampled on 03-July-2009 on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.

Bottle. Pours golden orange with an off white head. Floral hoppy aroma with some sweet malts. The flavor has caramel malts, light toast, and floral and earhty hops that last through a moderately bitter finish.

Bottle. Pours clear amber with a small, fizzy, white head, mostly diminishing with fair lacing. Aroma is heavy malt (grain, cereal, meal), average hop (pine, spruce, perfume), average yeast (earth) with notes of alcohol, wood, pear, and apple. Medium bodied, sticky texture, lively carbonation, and a bitter finish. Long duration, light sweetness, moderate acidity and bitterness.